Secondary breast cancer is breast cancer that has spread from the breast to other parts of the body.

Secondary breast cancer is also called metastatic breast cancer or advanced breast cancer. Many people diagnosed with secondary breast cancer have been diagnosed with breast cancer before. For some, a diagnosis of secondary breast cancer may be their first diagnosis of cancer.

In some people with breast cancer, cancer cells break away from the cancer in the breast. The cancer cells spread to other parts of the body via the blood vessels or lymphatic vessels and form a new cancer deposit.

This can happen before or after treatment for breast cancer. The original cancer in the breast is called the primary cancer. If breast cancer develops in another part of the body, it is called a secondary breast cancer or a metastasis.

We do not know what causes breast cancer to spread in some women and not in others.

If you have previously been diagnosed and treated for early breast cancer, it is important to remember that you and your doctors made the best decisions about your previous treatment with the information available at the time.  

Secondary breast cancer affects different people in different ways. The type and level of pain experienced by one person may not be the same as that for another person with cancer in the same parts of the body. Not everyone with secondary breast cancer finds it painful.

Some people have no pain; others find that pain affects them at certain times of the day or night or while doing different activities. Pain caused by secondary breast cancer does not always get worse with time. Cancer pain can be controlled. It is very rare to have cancer pain that cannot be lessened, changed or controlled. 

Some people who have been diagnosed and treated for early breast cancer assume that they should have regular scans and blood tests after treatment. However, studies have shown that having more tests does not improve the length or quality of life for women who have been treated for breast cancer, unless they have symptoms which suggest that cancer has spread outside the breast. 

The type and frequency of scans or other tests used to check whether your cancer is responding to treatment will depend on where the cancer is and the type of treatment(s) you receive. Tests might be less frequent if your cancer has been controlled for some time.

Ask your doctor or nurse specialist about what tests you might have and when these might be needed.

Secondary breast cancer that spreads to the brain does not cause mental illness. People may experience different symptoms depending on which part of the brain is affected by the cancer.

The most common symptom is headache that does not go away. Some people have difficulty concentrating or reading difficult text. A small number of people may experience changes in their mood, personality or mobility.

It is important that this is assessed by a health professional to make sure the changes are not due to other things, such as depression.

When cancer is confined to the breast, the priority for treatment is to remove the cancer and stop cancer cells from spreading to other parts of the body. Once cancer has spread outside the breast, the priority becomes controlling the cancer in the different parts of the body that are affected and slowing the further spread of the cancer.

For many people with secondary breast cancer, the cancer in the breast does not cause major symptoms or health problems. Surgery to the breast will not usually help to treat the cancer overall and may actually delay the other more useful treatments such as chemotherapy. However, in certain specific circumstances, surgery to remove the cancer in the breast may be recommended. 

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Pain is a warning system to alert health professionals to a problem. Once the problem has been identified, it is most important to relieve the pain. This is why stronger painkillers might be given to you. If pain is not relieved it can interfere with your ability to move freely and interact with others. This can often be worse than the possible side effects of the painkillers.